Plenty of hits and misses so far on campaign trail

IT'S BEEN almost a fortnight since the Noosa and Sunshine Coast Council election candidates were officially finalised.

With campaigning on for young and old and a combination of live radio broadcasts and election forums throughout the region, there's plenty of chances for candidates to spread their message.

But with great chances comes great opportunity. Not just for successful dissemination of policy, but for the odd blooper and blunder.

It's a fine line between propaganda and anonymity but the line appears not to have registered on at least one candidate's radar.

He's not James Bond but Division 1 hopeful Peter Robinson remains a man of mystery.

Unwilling to participate in the Daily's forum on Tuesday night, Mr Robinson is yet to engage with the Daily but we are watching with keen interest to see how his policies and campaign platform will be laid out.

Not quite a blooper, more a zinger, was delivered by none other than the Mayor himself at Tuesday night's election forum in Caloundra.

Those keeping a keen eye on the election forum road show may have been scratching their heads in Maleny on Thursday night.

Division 5 candidate Angela Green delivered a speech very similar to that delivered by her father, mayoral candidate Ron Green, at Tuesday night's forum.

It appears no matter how big or small an issue, Ms Green will be consulting with the community, a stance she repeated ad nauseam on Thursday night via her catchy 'Three Rs' slogan: responsible, respectful representation.

It would also be remiss of me to not provide a few tips to budding candidates too.

Tip 1: When establishing your campaign website: Try to include photos that indicate some sign of life. Appearing asleep, unconscious or worse is not the best first impression on the homepage.

Tip 2: Buzzwords: Drop them. Immediately. Innovation; economy; accountability; transparency; infrastructure. So you've got a degree/dictionary. Congratulations. Come on, give it to the people straight, in real talk, engage with them and tell them what your policy will mean for them.

Tip 3: Engage with the media: Yes this may be daunting. But when we're trying to a) give you a platform to outline your policies or b) provide a chance to show people a human side to you, don't look the proverbial gift horse in the mouth.

And finally, a tip for reporters looking to file live during the forum coverage (here's looking at you Bill Hoffman). Remember your laptop.